Summers Says U.S. Needs Serious Public Investment

Aug.28 -- Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Lawrence H. Summers, a Wall Street Week contributor and adviser to Democratic Presidential Nominee Joe Biden, says the U.S. economy needs a serious program of public investment, which should be paid for in part by tax increases. Glenn Hubbard, former U.S. Council of Economic Advisers chair, questions whether a large tax increase on business and business owners in a recession would work. They join David Westin on "Bloomberg Wall Street Week."

[christhompson]

Four more years of supply issues and interference from the government.

[Joe-ijof]

This is how you know they’re full of shit: Glenn is talking about how income tax increases are bad and the economy could really use a capital gains tax cut, but J Powell has made yields so low borrowing is basically interest free and the upside on IPOs has never been higher. Think about it... tax cuts only matter if you make a profit, but to make a profit you would’ve needed to cover the principal payments or imputed cost of capital FIRST. If corporations aren’t really borrowing interest free money for expansion to earn a return, why the hell would marginal tax cuts suddenly make a difference? Why would companies suddenly expand in the middle of a shitstorm when the previous two years they used 85% of the tax cuts for buybacks and dividends and not growth? 30% of stocks are owned by foreign investors... who do those dividends help exactly?

[antonpopov]

The Biden side walked around the answer in the most broad way until you forgot the original question.

[scarfacela]

I'm a black man and it is disrespectful to say to me that I am not black if I vote for a president that I deem effective for me and the country.